How to Name Your Florida Limited Liability Company (LLC)

You need the right name for your Florida LLC. Choosing the right name is vital because It tells your suppliers, customers and employees what your business does. Florida has several rules and regulations about what you can call your new business. Let’s explore what they are:

Florida Rules on What You Can Call Your LLC

The name needs to be unique and not used by another LLC or business operating in Florida

It should not be possible to confuse the name of your business with the name of another Florida business.

For example, you can’t claim that Blue Widget Co., Blue Widget LLC, Blue Widget Incorporated, Blue-Widget-Company or Blue Widget are different to each other.

Other Words And Your Florida LLC Business Name

Certain restricted words need additional paperwork if you want to use them in your business name. This includes both names associated with institutions, e.g. bank, credit union, and words associated with certain qualified professions like doctors, engineers, attorneys or architects.

You cannot use certain prohibited words that would confuse the name of your LLC with a federal or state agency, e.g. IRS, EPA, Treasury etc.

You can also be a Florida LLC with a different “doing business as” name. In Florida these are known as “Fictitious Names” and need to be registered with the secretary of state. You can find full details on doing that here.

Infringing on Service Marks or Trademarks Inside or Outside Florida

In addition to the rules above, it’s also vital to see if your Florida LLC name might infringe on the trademark or service mark of another business. For example, it might not be a good idea to call yourself “Google Search Optimization Services,” since Google is a trademark.

The easiest way to see if your proposed business name infringes is to carry out a trademark search. You can do that via the United States Patent and Trademark Office. You should also bear in mind that your Florida business entity name cannot be substantially similar to an existing trademark or service mark.

Compliance Requirements

This report is mandatory and must be filed within the specified time frame in order for the entity to remain in good standing with the state. Failure to file this report can lead to the company being revoked or administratively dissolved.